the yanks are the team they have been since 1996 because of both players - they could not be who they were without both of them. neither could fill the void the of the other. tie.
[5] Mentioned him only in passing, and not in any way relevant to the main discussion:
I think for a long time, Mattingly was No. 1 on the list… you could NOT help but love Mattingly. The guy was ALL ballplayer. Ron Guidry was a little bit like that. Roger Maris was a little bit like that. Bernie William … Jim Abbott… Jim Bouton… Mickey Rivers…
[8] Agreed. My answer too. I don't know why, but the person I think of most from the '98 thru 2000 Yankee teams is El Duque. Something about El Duque that just brings back a lot fond memories of those years.
What about Luis Sojo, Jose Vizcaino, or Ricky Ledee? They must feel bad for being left out. :-)
[11] It's a funny paragraph, too, because as much as I loved Bernie, he never struck me as "all ball player", nor did he really seem to fit in that list of players...at least in my mind.
It's an interesting debate, and one frequently broached on YES and forums like outs, but still fun to see in the hands of someone like Joe Pos. His implication that Mo's case had to be made from the heart, however, got me wondering, so I took a closer look. Off the bat, it seems as if Joe Po robbed Mo of some WAR points. He puts Mo at 35.8, but B-R.com has him at 52.3, which is much closer to Jeter's 70.3. Further, Mariano enjoys a higher premium over other leaders at his position as well as an off the charts post season record. I am not sure if anyone computes playoff WAR, but if so, I'd guess it would significantly mitigate Jeter's post season advantage.
Baseball is about competition, singling out one player over another when both have been top performers is pointless. It sounds like one of those silly text things they try to sell on the baseball broadcasts.
[18] Comparing players probably dates back to the day after the first baseball game was played. I don't think it's pointless at all, and judging by the response, neither do many others.
as a closer, mariano is available for just about every close game, so he's like an everyday player in hyper-sense. everytime he is needed, he is there. if you go to a yankee game, there's a decent chance he will play, and when he does, a big chance the game is on the line.
pos said jeter was the face and mo was the nerve. i prefer to think of mo as the backbone.
also, jeter has to be ginger, rivera has to be mary ann, right? how did pos blow that chipee?
Derek Jeter.
OK, now I'll go look at the article and see what Joe has to say.
overall: Jeter
playoffs only: Mo
Jeter, though if you look only at the "championship years" of '96-'00 it might have been Bernie Williams.
RIP Bobby Thomson . . . dead at 86
http://tinyurl.com/27ubwsc
[4] RIP, indeed.
[3] Fascinating point, Cliff! Did Joe Pos touch on Bernie in his article at all?
I think it has to be Jeter, just because he played more. But Mo is certainly in a class by himself.
This is a Lennon or McCartney question, to which the answer is [3] (ding ding ding ding!) George Harrison?!
Yeah, Cliff I think you're right, and the writers should keep that point in mind when it comes to Bernie's Hall of Fame candidacy.
[5] nope. bernabe was not mentioned a-once.
[6] pete best. ; )
the yanks are the team they have been since 1996 because of both players - they could not be who they were without both of them. neither could fill the void the of the other. tie.
[5] Mentioned him only in passing, and not in any way relevant to the main discussion:
[8] Agreed. My answer too. I don't know why, but the person I think of most from the '98 thru 2000 Yankee teams is El Duque. Something about El Duque that just brings back a lot fond memories of those years.
What about Luis Sojo, Jose Vizcaino, or Ricky Ledee? They must feel bad for being left out. :-)
[9] oh yeah. i remember that paragraph but forgot bernie was even mentioned there. i was surprised to see ellie howard in joe's initial top 5.
posada should've gotten at least a mention...
[11] It's a funny paragraph, too, because as much as I loved Bernie, he never struck me as "all ball player", nor did he really seem to fit in that list of players...at least in my mind.
I thought Bernie was the linchpin at the time.
"Writer supreme Charlie Pierce’s order of Yankee importance:
1) Rivera.
2) Rivera
3) Steinbrenner’s accountant."
Funny!
[15] There is an argument to be made along those lines . . .
It's an interesting debate, and one frequently broached on YES and forums like outs, but still fun to see in the hands of someone like Joe Pos. His implication that Mo's case had to be made from the heart, however, got me wondering, so I took a closer look. Off the bat, it seems as if Joe Po robbed Mo of some WAR points. He puts Mo at 35.8, but B-R.com has him at 52.3, which is much closer to Jeter's 70.3. Further, Mariano enjoys a higher premium over other leaders at his position as well as an off the charts post season record. I am not sure if anyone computes playoff WAR, but if so, I'd guess it would significantly mitigate Jeter's post season advantage.
Baseball is about competition, singling out one player over another when both have been top performers is pointless. It sounds like one of those silly text things they try to sell on the baseball broadcasts.
[18] Comparing players probably dates back to the day after the first baseball game was played. I don't think it's pointless at all, and judging by the response, neither do many others.
as a closer, mariano is available for just about every close game, so he's like an everyday player in hyper-sense. everytime he is needed, he is there. if you go to a yankee game, there's a decent chance he will play, and when he does, a big chance the game is on the line.
pos said jeter was the face and mo was the nerve. i prefer to think of mo as the backbone.
also, jeter has to be ginger, rivera has to be mary ann, right? how did pos blow that chipee?
Sorry, I'll miss them both when they leave soon but they will be equally hard to replace.
I love Jeter but Mo is my favorite. Jeter is DiMaggio, he's a star and an icon, Mr. Yankee, but Mo is an artist, Astaire on the mound.